Governor Shapiro has signed a proclamation to signify March 2025 as Brain Injury Awareness Month. Members are encouraged to share this proclamation or post it within their organizations so clients and families can be aware of this event.
The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) released the rate study that was commissioned last August after RCPA and other industry associations collaborated to access the information needed to establish rates for services.
For background purposes, HCBS are offered through Medicaid as an alternative to facility or institutional care. Reimbursement rates for these programs are set by DHS and are informed by an actuarial rate setting process and a public comment process. Long-term services and supports (LTSS) help older Pennsylvanians and adults with physical disabilities.
The rate study revealed the need for substantial and immediate rate increases for the services which were evaluated. The study concluded, “Given the comparisons to benchmark rates, it appears that revisions to the rates studied for this report would be appropriate. The tables below show detailed results from the benchmark rate comparison.” The specific rate gaps were:
Findings of the study are used to inform the Commonwealth’s budget and future rate setting processes. View the results here.
If you have any questions, please contact Fady Sahhar or Melissa Dehoff.
The Medical Rehabilitation Committee meeting scheduled for March 11, 2025, has been postponed to April 1, 2025, and will be held from 11:00 am – 12:00 pm. Registration details will be sent at the end of February. Members that registered to participate in the March meeting will need to re-register for the April 1 meeting.
If you have any questions, please contact Melissa Dehoff.
The Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Subcommittee meeting convened on February 5, 2025. During the meeting, a number of presentations were given. In addition to the presentations, the February meeting agenda and the meeting transcript from the January 8, 2025, LTSS Subcommittee meeting were provided.
Members should take time to review the PowerPoint presentations from the meeting:
The meeting transcript is available here.
The next LTSS Subcommittee meeting is scheduled for March 7, 2025, from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm and will be held via webinar and remote streaming.
To participate in the meeting via webinar, please register here.
If calling into the meeting, the dial-in information is: 1 (562) 247-8422; Access Code: 145-307-305#
Tomorrow, February 5, the House Human Services Committee will hold a second informational meeting on the treatment and support for Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). The meeting will be held at 9:00 am in Room G-50 in the Irvis Office Building of the Capitol.
The hearing will include testimony to be provided by the PA Department of Health, NeuroRestorative, Woods Services, Penn State Health, and Penn State College of Medicine. Following the testimony from the panelists, they will receive questions from the members of the Committees.
The meeting will be livestreamed, which can be accessed from the Human Services website here.
As was shared in the RCPA Alert sent on Tuesday, January 28, the House Human Services and Insurance Committees held a joint informational meeting on January 29 on Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): Care Needs and Coverage Options, where testimony was provided by RCPA, OLTL, Success Rehabilitation, BIAPA, and insurers.
Following the hearing, leadership from the House Human Services Committee has requested additional information from BI providers. Please review the questions below and provide responses to Melissa Dehoff by close of business Monday, February 3.
The important message to share is that we have the legislators’ attention! Things are moving very quickly; there are many meetings, calls, and ongoing communications with leadership in the legislature as we enter the key phase of budget negotiations.
It is critical that we have full participation in providing this information from every single BI provider/program. If we do not provide responses from 100% of our BI members, it could have an impact on funds being allocated to us in the budget.
Please contact Melissa Dehoff with questions and your responses.
Tomorrow, January 29, the House Human Services and Insurance Committees will hold a joint informational meeting on Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): Care Needs and Coverage Options. The meeting is scheduled at 9:00 am in Room G-50 in the Irvis Office Building of the Capitol.
The hearing will include three separate panels that will include testimony to be provided by:
Following the testimonies from the panelists, they will receive questions from the members of the Committees.
The meeting will be livestreamed, which can be accessed from the Human Services website here.
For additional information, please view the agenda here.
The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) is partnering with the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP), The Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, College of Education and Human Development, and the University of Kansas Center on Disabilities’ State of the States team to host Pennsylvania Technology Summits as part of a statewide initiative called PA Tech Accelerator.
The goal of the Summits is to expand the awareness of, and access to, assistive technology and remote technologies in order to build capacity of technology users throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The Summits will be held on March 6, 2025, in Philadelphia and March 13, 2025, in Pittsburgh. To attend, please register here.
The Summits will feature a keynote address by Rebekah Taussig, PhD; a panel of technology users giving advice, sharing their stories, and answering questions; and vendors showcasing services, devices, and solutions.
Who is invited?
If you have additional questions about the Summit, please contact Kristy Crocetto at (215) 204-1356 or via email.
